Neurology Minute
In the February episode of the President's Spotlight, Dr. Jason Crowell and Dr. Natalia Rost discuss the AAN’s Research Program. Stay informed by watching the video.
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In the final episode of this series, Casey Kozak discusses functional sensory loss. Show citation: Sonoo M. Abductor sign: a reliable new sign to detect unilateral non-organic paresis of the lower limb. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. . Show transcript: Welcome back to Neurology Minute. My name is Casey Kozak, and today we're finishing our discussion of functional neurological disorder and physical exam findings. We're going to now turn to functional sensory loss. But first, it's important to acknowledge that the subjective nature of sensory symptoms means that our...
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In part one of this series, Dr. Justin Abbatemarco explores how to effectively reach today’s learners through podcasts and social media. Show transcript: Dr. Justin Abbatemarco: Hello and welcome. This is Justin Abbatemarco, and I just got done finishing an episode on non-traditional educational formats reshaping neurology training. I was joined by some really terrific teachers and faculty members, Roy Strowd, Jeff Ratliff and Tesha Monteith, and it was really great hearing from these different perspectives. On today's Neurology Minute, we really want to talk about how we can reach our...
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Dr. Andy Southerland and Dr. Dipika Aggarwal discuss her remarkable journey as both a physician and a patient. After overcoming stage four colon cancer, she experienced a life‑altering stroke that reshaped her perspective. Show transcript: Dr. Andy Southerland: Hello everyone. This is Andy Southerland and for this week's Neurology Minute, I've just been speaking with our colleague, Dipika Aggarwal, who's a clinical assistant professor of neurology at University of Kansas, who's been sharing her story for the Physician's Patient series from Cancer Survivorship and as a stroke survivor....
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Dr. Aaron Zelikovich discusses recent survey findings highlighting the wide variability in how clinicians evaluate and diagnose small fiber neuropathy. Fill out the Neurology® Clinical . Show citation: Thawani S, Chan M, Ostendorf T, et al. How Well do We Evaluate Small Fiber Neuropathy?: A Survey of American Academy of Neurology Members. J Clin Neuromuscul Dis. 2025;26(4):184-195. Published 2025 Jun 2. doi: Show transcript: Dr. Aaron Zelikovich: Welcome to today's Neurology Minute. My name is Aaron Zelikovich, a neuromuscular specialist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New...
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In part three of this four-part series, Casey Kozak discusses the hip abductor sign as an option for assessing weakness in the lower extremities. Show citation: Sonoo M. Abductor sign: a reliable new sign to detect unilateral non-organic paresis of the lower limb. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. . Show transcript: Casey Kozak: Hello, this is Casey Kozak with Neurology Minute, and today we're returning to physical exam tests for functional neurological disorder. This episode will piggyback off our last focusing on Hoover's sign, now focusing on other signs of functional...
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In the second episode of this two-part series, Dr. Stacey Clardy and Dr. John Ney discuss why deaths from neurologic conditions are decreasing, but disability is rising, and what this shift means for future care. Show citation: Ney JP, Steinmetz JD, Anderson-Benge E, et al. US Burden of Disorders Affecting the Nervous System: From the Global Burden of Disease 2021 Study. JAMA Neurol. 2026;83(1):20-34. doi: Show transcript: Dr. Stacey Clardy: Hi, this is Stacey Clardy from the Salt Lake City VA and the University of Utah. I've been talking with John Ney from...
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Dr. Tesha Monteith and Dr. Michael Eller discuss the implications of CGRP therapies in migraine treatment, particularly for patients with vascular risk factors or a history of stroke. Show citation: Eller MT, Schwarzová K, Gufler L, et al. CGRP-Targeted Migraine Therapies in Patients With Vascular Risk Factors or Stroke: A Review. Neurology. 2025;105(2):e213852. doi: Show transcript: Dr. Tesha Monteith: Hi, this is Tesha Monteith with the Neurology Minute. I've just been speaking with Michael Eller from the Department of Neurology Medical University of Innsbruck, Austria on...
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In part one of this two-part series, Dr. Stacey Clardy and Dr. John Ney break down the key message neurologists need to understand from this update and offer guidance on how to clearly convey it to patients. Show citation: Ney JP, Steinmetz JD, Anderson-Benge E, et al. US Burden of Disorders Affecting the Nervous System: From the Global Burden of Disease 2021 Study. JAMA Neurol. 2026;83(1):20-34. doi: Show transcript: Dr. Stacey Clardy: Hi, this is Stacey Clardy from the Salt Lake City VA in the University of Utah. I've been talking with John Ney from Yale about a global...
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In part two of this four-part series, Casey Kozak discusses Hover's sign, the most well-known test for FND. Show transcript: Casey Kozak: Welcome back to Neurology Minute. My name is Casey Kozak with Rutgers, and today we're continuing our examination of functional neurological disorder. That is physical examination. This episode is dedicated to Hoover's sign, probably the most well-known test for FND, and in my humble opinion, one of the most confusing maneuvers to learn. So today, we're going back to the origin using Dr. Charles Franklin Hoover's original description. Maybe...
info_outlineDr. Aaron Zelikovich discusses the utility of neurofilament light chain as a serum biomarker in peripheral neuropathy.
Show citation:
Karam C. Clinical Utility of Serum Neurofilament Light Chain in Peripheral Neuropathy. Muscle Nerve. 2026;73(1):86-92. doi:10.1002/mus.70073
Show transcript:
Dr. Aaron Zelikovich:
Welcome to today's neurology minute. My name is Aaron Zelikovich, a neuromuscular specialist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. Today, we will discuss a recent article on the utility of neurofilament light chain as a serum biomarker in peripheral neuropathy. It has been studied in other neurological diseases like ALS and multiple sclerosis, as in the 2024 study by Robert Fox et al, which highlighted the limitations of serum neurofilament light chain in patients with multiple sclerosis, since the elevation was inconsistent and tended to occur weeks after MRI changes, and was really only found to be helpful in certain clinical situations. The study we highlight today is a single-center retrospective study that highlights the opportunities and limitations of using serum neurofilament light chain as a biomarker to monitor treatment response and peripheral neuropathy.
Serum neurofilament light chain has been shown as an indicator of neuronal injury in both central and peripheral nervous system disease that has been associated with axonal injury or degeneration. It is now commercially available. The authors in this study provide a real-world single-center retrospective study that looked at various forms of peripheral neuropathy over 12 months. Patients had to be evaluated and meet criteria for peripheral neuropathy with either genetic testing, nerve conduction studies, and/or clinical exams. Neuropathies included TTR amyloid, vasculitis, CMT, CIDP, GBS, and anti-MAG neuropathy.
Patients with TTR amyloid who were treatment naive and had elevated serum neurofilament light chain showed a reduction in neurofilament light chain levels with treatment. Additionally, patients with CIDP who were treatment naive with elevated serum neurofilament light chain also showed a reduction in neurofilament light chain levels with treatment. All patients with idiopathic peripheral neuropathy had normal serum neurofilament light chain levels. However, serum neurofilament light chain can vary in patients based on age, if they have diabetes, renal dysfunction, and body weight. And this makes it really challenging to interpret it in an isolated setting.
Serum neurofilament light chain is a new biomarker for peripheral neuropathies. It can be a supplemental tool in the appropriate clinical context. Future studies are needed to identify its potential to be used as a treatment response biomarker in neuropathies like CADP, GBS, and TTR amyloid. Thank you so much, and have a wonderful day.